The Middletown Press (Middletown, CT)
Bill could let college athletes wear logos
HARTFORD — Highprofile state athletes would be able to wear their team uniforms, including logos like the UConn Husky or the Southern Connecticut Owl, in legislation approved in the state Senate on Tuesday under the socalled name, image and likeness rules adopted last year by the National Collegiate Athletic Association.
While the state law that passed last year prohibited athletes from using identifying marks of their universities when cashing in on their pictures, it didn’t take very long for university officials to realize that it was putting Connecticut institutions of higher learning at a disadvantage when recruiting blue-chip athletes.
The bill, which passed 33-1, heads to the House of Representatives, and would take effect July 1. It leaves it open for universities to reach agreements with player agents to possibly pay something for use of the names and logos of institutions.
It also doesn’t require the young athletes to use their college logos.
State Sen. Derek Slap, D-West Hartford, co-chairman of the Higher Education Committee, introduced the legislation, which he described as emerging during a very quick-changing landscape for higher education and the marketplace for students to make money while undergraduates, shattering the myth of amateur athletics.
The bill would require the UConn Board of Trustees and the Board of Regents to submit a report on the fiscal impact of the issue by Jan. 1, 2023.
Slap said the bill would create more fairness in the multi-billion-dollar collegeathletic industry, spreading some revenue to athletes. “And for the most part our student athletes are not able to enjoy the fruits of their labor and their talent,” he said, warning that other states are adopting wider-ranging name, image and likeness laws that could make it more attractive for stars to attend college in those states.
“In just a very short amount of time, Connecticut has faced the situation where we need to pass this bill in order to help remain competitive with our other states,” Slap said. “I believe there are only two states that do not currently allow their student athletes to use the college/institution’s logo or trademark of where they attend.”
He said that while star basketball and football players might benefit the most, the majority of student athletes are in lesserknown sports who might want to participate in summer camps, or endorse products wearing their uniform tops.
Sen. Paul Formica, REast Lyme, noted that while the report will be submitted on the fiscal implications of the new revenue landscape, there are no other requirements.
“I don’t think that this legislative body wants to be in a position of having to approve or opine on each agreement, endorsement deal that our student athletes enter into, but what we do want is some transparency in the process and I think that we’ll have that with what’s required of the schools and universities,” Slap said.
Sen. Tony Hwang, RFairfield, asked whether there should be more study of the issue going forward in a fast-changing market. “Have we done any followup analysis on other sports within our college system, from rowing to swimming and different sports?”
Hwang asked.
The 2021 bill, crafted in a bipartisan fashion, was drafted cooperatively with officials from higher education.
“They’re the ones, coaches in particular, are in the recruiting field, right?” Slap said.
“Who are out there and trying to get students athletes in not only Connecticut, but other places to come to Connecticut. They are telling us this is important to our student athletes and are also important to our institutions.”